Home Sick
by lilAzIaNpride24
Summary: Charlie is feeling a little home sick and nostalgic and Mike tries to help her out.


**Hi guys! I haven't written a fic in a while, but I wrote part of this like a month ago and I wanted to finish it, so I did. :D I actually needed to finish it because the last episode, 'Smoke Alarm' really bothered me. It seemed like Mike trusted Paige more than Charlie and seemed like Jeff Eastin was hinting that they were going to get together, but that should not happen. :( **

**Marlie all the way! :D Who's with me?**

**Enjoy~**

**Disclaimer: I obviously do not own Graceland because if I did, there would be hints of Mike & Charlie together.**

**A/N: If you look in the pilot, the house is actually supported by cement support beams and you could go under the house. That is what I am talking about in this fic.**

**A/N ^2: This is sort of a sequel to my first Graceland fic, 'Footsteps'. So I suggest you read that one first, if you want.**

* * *

Rain wasn't common in So-Cal, but today, rain poured down heavily outside (or at least what 'heavily' could go so far as in Southern California) as the residents of Graceland stood around the kitchen island to receive what was now dubbed as Levi's Famous Hot Cocoa.

"Man, that right there is some really is good hot chocolate." Johnny admitted as he piled his cup with more tiny marshmallows and sucked the powder left over on his fingers.

"Told ya." Mike replied casually as he took another sip. "That's how the East Coast does it."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Charlie sitting against the giant living room window with her knees curled up against her chest.

"Man, don't get even started on that shit." Briggs added.

Mike gave them a little smirk as he poured an extra cup of hot chocolate and added seven tiny marshmallows in it before walking over to her.

"Mind if I join you?" He handed her over the freshly poured hot cocoa to her cold hands. She thanked him softly as he sat across from her with his knees bent and his wrists resting on his knees as his hands held his own cup of cocoa.

He studied her for a bit – she held the cocoa in one hand as the other lazily ran across the cold glass – before looking out onto the stormy beach himself to see what she was looking so intensively at.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Although the question was rhetorical, he kind of expected an answer from her. When she didn't, he motioned to say something else, but she interrupted.

"I miss it."

He stared at her in confusion for a moment; contemplating what to say next.

Probably sensing his confusion, she looked over to him, and went on, "The constant changing weather of New York; I miss it, the rain especially. All of it; the drizzles and the drenching downpours, the foggy mist and the slow tempo of the rain when you sleep. I miss it all." She took a sip of the hot cocoa and smiled.

"Thanks for this. I know you said that if you weren't there to get any, I wouldn't get any."

"No problem, anything for you." He gave her a genuine smile before continuing, "Especially after what you did for me on Sauce Night including when you took me out to the beach and calmed me down. And even when you said that if I didn't eat the leftovers you left out for me, I would never get any more sauce again."

She let out a small chuckle before a somewhat comfortable silence fell upon the two roommates.

Mike heard the TV turn on in the distance as the rest of the roommates got comfortable with a bowl of popcorn, individual mugs filled with Levi's Famous Hot Cocoa, and a Bourne Marathon playing on CLOO Network.

"I really needed this." She ran her fingers along the handles of the mug – not looking up at him - with uncertainty as she spoke, "When I was little, my dad," She shifted with awkwardness, "He, umm… He used to bring me a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows whenever a thunderstorm came around and tell me stories of how he and my mom met." She stopped for a second and her face scrunched up slightly as if recalling the suppressed childhood memories were painful.

"Then my dad would take us out into rain and we would just dance and dance and dance. Then my mom would scream at us about how stupid we were and how we would get a cold, but…" She let out a small chuckle before continuing, "Later she would just come outside and dance with us." A smile dawned on her face as she told him that and a small tear escaped from her eye.

She quickly wiped the tear with the pad of her thumb as she also quickly added uncomfortably, "Sorry. I, it's just… I'm being stupid."

"Hey," He raised her chin so her eyes would look directly into his as he spoke, "It's not stupid."

Charlie looked back down and played with the handle of the mug before taking a small sip. She licked her lips a little and returned to staring out the window again.

Inwardly, Mike sighed and silence fell upon them once again.

Suddenly, he snatched her mug out her hands and placed hers along with his on the hardwood floor beside him. As he stood, he pulled Charlie up as well.

"I was drinking that, you know." She said as-a-matter-of-factly.

Mike just smirked and told her to get the two biggest bath towels she could find and a beach towel.

"Just do it." He ordered when she didn't move.

Ten minutes later, Charlie met him downstairs with two big towels thrown over one shoulder and the beach towel on the other. He himself had slung a backpack with two clearly seen thermoses in the side cup holders on his shoulder and carried a giant umbrella.

Mike unbuttoned the strap of the umbrella and dragged her towards the front door.

"What the hell are you guys doing?" Jakes accused as he saw them headed for the door.

All eyes were focused on them now when Mike answered, "Reliving an old childhood memory."

"What?" Paige asked, obviously confused.

Mike didn't answer her question. Instead, he opened the front door, released the umbrella from its catch, and pulled Charlie along with him.

They walked down the stairs in a rather fast, but careful manner, Mike dragging Charlie with him all the while. Once they'd reached the bottom, Mike took Charlie under the house and gently placed the base on its back as it leaned against one of the far end cement support beams. He closed the umbrella and proceeded to take the bath towels off Charlie's shoulder and place them inside the backpack. He then took the beach towel and spread it on the dry sand. (The tide had not accumulated under the house yet.)

"Mike -" She started, but he interrupted her by pulling her towards the rain.

"What are you -" The rain pelted them and the new feeling made Charlie shriek.

Mike whispered into her ear, "Let's dance."

* * *

Up above, the other housemates gathered themselves in front of the window to see Charlie and Mike laughing and dancing the waltz erratically. (Much like how Harry & Hermione danced in Deathly Hallows Pt. 2)

Taking a sip from her mug, Paige smiled, Jakes' murmured something under his breath that sounded something like, "Crazy East Coasters…" before going back to the couch, and Johnny whispered in Paige's ear, "I bet you 2 rounds on the chore wheel that they're gonna have sex tonight."

"You're on. Charlie and Mike aren't that stupid." Paige whispered back.

Johnny and Paige turned around to go back to the James Bond marathon, still arguing on whether or not Charlie and Mike would be stupid enough to go as far as having sex tonight.

Briggs had lingered a little while longer before going back to the marathon with everybody else. It seemed as though a sad longing for the past to come to life had filled his eyes. Yet, it was gone as quick as it came.

* * *

Back on the stormy and thunderous beach, Mike had just spun Charlie once before bringing her close to him again. They danced happily in the rain, seeming as though they were in their world entirely.

Mike's arm was outstretched now as Charlie spun along his arm and stopped when her hand caught his. He spun her back towards him and he pulled her closer to his body; her head rested against his chest, her arm, on his shoulder, while the other was intertwined in his, lifted by their side as they danced slowly to the beat of nature.

"Thank you." Her voice was soft and quiet, but even through the loud rain, he heard her.

They were both drenched with rain, but they didn't seem to mind.

Still in their own world, Charlie pulled away a little and lifted her head to take a clear look at Mike's face. The hand that was intertwined in his found its way to the nape of his neck and slowly sunk into his brown tresses as the other kept idle on his shoulder. She tiptoed a little and stopped to search his eyes for any traces of uncertainty. Once she suspected she found none, she leaned in further until her lips met his, their mouths wet from the pouring rain. Her idle hand now rested on his cheek as his strong arms pulled her close to him as they found the small of her back and around her waist as he pulled her closer.

They pulled apart for a damned thing called oxygen and found their way back to each other's eyes. They stared at each other for a good minute or two before simultaneously letting out a tiny laugh.

"Come on, we should get dry." Mike guided her under the house where he dug inside to hand her a towel and used the other one to dry his hair.

As Charlie was drying her own hair, she let out a little chuckle.

Mike opened his eyes and asked, "What?"

"You're cute when you dry your hair; like a puppy." She gave him a smile and turned towards the ocean. She wrapped herself in the towel and took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

Mike stared at her for a while, his hands now idle and the towel resting on his neck. He bent down and unzipped the backpack and produced a silver thermos.

Charlie opened her eyes when she felt a pair of arms slide from her shoulders gently towards her stomach from behind. He uncapped the thermos to reveal a deliciously chocolate smelling brown liquid as it emanated warm smoke.

She smiled at the newfound feeling of his arms embracing her and thought to herself, _'I could get used to_ this.'

* * *

**Thanks for reading! Feel free to review~**

**A/N: I was going to end this a different way, but I liked how it ended. ;)**


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